tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36425600566229797332024-02-07T11:47:46.487-06:00The Stewarts in AfricaTim and Aliciahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16971448830424993246noreply@blogger.comBlogger97125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3642560056622979733.post-19554044020726311672014-03-23T05:17:00.000-05:002014-03-23T05:17:00.993-05:00Here and There<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlIGdKmRXMoXmG3HqVTxBqQLduq1cR5xmI8qC0JZZggYPeaxbwA1jg43k0sY54lmwdQhXfcWlf2H7LoT2wsI47COLEV2-bmSyO_PFrsBZ8qrBmqX298tXEs0awwPWGj5QOz6ceecxSqCul/s1600/_MG_7057.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlIGdKmRXMoXmG3HqVTxBqQLduq1cR5xmI8qC0JZZggYPeaxbwA1jg43k0sY54lmwdQhXfcWlf2H7LoT2wsI47COLEV2-bmSyO_PFrsBZ8qrBmqX298tXEs0awwPWGj5QOz6ceecxSqCul/s1600/_MG_7057.JPG" height="213" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="color: #3d85c6;"><b>I am surprised my heart has never burst from how much I love these kids!</b></span></i></td></tr>
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As I drove home from a 3.5 hour trip to the grocery store (ugh, seriously) I thought about how nice it will be to just be able to go to Target or the Wal-marts and get food and other needed items. But then almost immediately I thought about how I would miss the "fun " of my shopping experiences here. <br />
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As we prepare to come back to the U.S for a visit later this year, these kind of thoughts are continually running through my mind. I can't help but think about how much I will miss my little friends and their hugs, smiles, fist bumps, and laughs. But then there are absolutely no words to describe how unbelievably ecstatic I am to be able to play with our niece and nephews. Words are unable to capture how excited I am for hugs from our parents and siblings, shopping trips, Sunday lunches. I cannot wait to have coffees and dinners with our friends, but then I feel some sadness when I think of not seeing our teammates, co-workers, and friends for a few months.<br />
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I think of how much easier driving will be there, but then I will sort of (surprisingly) miss the adventure that driving brings and the huge feeling of accomplishment and bravery after each trip. I am so looking forward to some really good pizza, but I am going to miss the places we have Ethiopian food and Indian food. It is exciting to think about waking up in our family's home, but we will also miss our new house. Our routine will be so much different as we temporarily leave jobs and roles we absolutely love. In that, we know there is time needed to refresh and reflect.<br />
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We are looking forward to seeing loved ones in person and not through the computer screen. We cannot wait to share about Missions of Hope with our supporters and partners (and anyone who will listen!) The ache of missing our family and friends will be gone for a few months. Yet we will still miss so many people living here that we really love. While being surrounded by English may be easier, we will really miss the Swahili and other languages constantly spoken around us. While we are looking forward to worshiping in the way we known most of our lives, we are really going to miss our fellow church members and the dancing!<br />
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When I am honest with myself about this, I desperately want these things to sort of cancel each other out. I want to feel neutral or maybe what I want is to feel normal. When I pray about and prepare my heart for this time, I shed tears over both things. Happy and sad. Comfortable and a little scared. Ready for rest and to exhale, yet knowing I will miss the pace of life we have here.<br />
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Our lives are a seemingly constant paradox. What was once so foreign has now become so familiar. And what was once so familiar and all we had ever know will undoubtedly be in some ways foreign. As we straddle the globe, we accept this as reality.<br />
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Almost 2 years ago, I wrote<b><u><i><span style="color: blue;"> <a href="http://thestewartsinafrica.blogspot.com/2012/03/so-it-begins.html" target="_blank">this</a></span></i></u></b>, praying for the unknown to become the familiar. God answered that so abundantly. My heart sings when someone calls us Kenyan, or friend, or "one of us", and especially when the kids know me by my name. So even as I write this, I am so thankful for that. I am so glad that while we SO, SO much want to see and just <i><b>be</b></i> with all of you there, our heart is at home here as well. That is a precious gift. <br />
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Oh my goodness, we are so looking forward to being with you. Your prayers and encouragements sustain us. We could not be here without you. We cannot wait to share a laugh, a story, to hear all about your lives, to share about our friends here and God at work in Missions of Hope, to share a meal, to take a road trip, to hug you, and so many other things. In those times, we bring <i style="font-weight: bold;">here, </i>this beautiful place we also call home, to you. Together the worlds collide and we see God at work all over His created world. He weaves our lives together into this beautiful display of love and grace. Together we share and together we see Jesus more clearly.<br />
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<br />Alicia Stewarthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17136453116313101199noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3642560056622979733.post-55811719636939378382013-09-22T06:19:00.000-05:002013-09-22T06:53:07.886-05:00Processing TodayThe attack in Nairobi that began yesterday and continues into today hits close to home Because, well, it is close to home. We can hop in the car and be there in about 7 minutes. Many, many times since moving here, we have hopped in the car and went to West Gate mall. The mall is very upscale so we can only shop at the grocery store, purchase our monthly Internet, and maybe eat at a few of the cafes. We shop there often because sometimes the grocery store sells Dr. Pepper. If we are really lucky, it sells Kraft Mac 'n' Cheese! We bought our appliances there. We took our families and visiting friends there. It was one of the first places I drove to and frequented alone. It never felt unsafe. Never. <br />
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Yesterday that changed. My heart hurts so much today as I try to make sense of something that does not make sense. Today people are mourning the loss of a loved one. Someone they likely said "see you later" to yesterday as they went off to go to the mall for a normal Saturday. Others are in the hospital nursing wounds. Some will be released and able to go home to their families. Some are critical. Some will probably not make it. And for those who escaped the mall, they now have to live with this trauma. What started out as a normal, beautiful day in Nairobi will forever change the lives of so many. In an instant.</div>
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My brain is spinning and my heart hurts so much as I cannot stop thinking about these things. We keep watching the news and hearing helicopters flying over our home. But what my heart knows is that God is still sovereign. Today I get to <i><b>choose</b></i> to believe in that. To trust in that. In the midst of senseless killings, faith doesn't come as easy as it did the other day when I hung out with smiling, singing students. Today I have to look around to see the evidence of God's love.</div>
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And you know what, I see it! </div>
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-I see it in the guys outside our house who are selling sugar cane and roasted corn. Just like any other Sunday.</div>
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-I see it in the number of people who are lining up to give blood to save the lives of strangers.</div>
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-I see it in the unity of Kenyans and those, like us, who live in Kenya. An unwillingness to back down even in the midst of tragedy.</div>
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-I see it in the mixture of sadness and strength in the eyes of the President. Personally effected and unwavering, vowing to bring those who perpetrated this violence to justice.</div>
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-I see it as we watch the news and we see workers from the mall helping others to safety. People unknown to them before, but now united forever by this experience.</div>
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-I see it in people handing out free food and drinks to those who are near the mall.</div>
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-I see it in the prayers offered up from all over the world.</div>
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When I look around, I cannot help but see it. Today we must rest in that. We are thankful to reside in a place that will not let the evil of some destroy the hope of many. We are so blessed by the way we continually see Kenyans unite together. This nation is beautiful and strong. We will remember the past, but look towards the future. That is what Kenyans do. </div>
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Today we lift up Kenya in prayer. We believe in a God of all the nations. The one we come from, the one we reside in, and all the other ones. For us, our world was shaken up yesterday. For others around the world, the fear that accompanies terrorism is somewhat a norm in their lives. We pray for them today and lift them to the God who cares. </div>
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All knowing and all powerful, the hope of nations is in Him alone. </div>
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Alicia Stewarthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17136453116313101199noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3642560056622979733.post-30879241390901492082013-09-13T11:16:00.000-05:002013-09-13T11:22:27.536-05:00StoriesBecause of my(our) awesome job/life, I get to see people meet their sponsored kids for the first time or witness them seeing their kids again. I get to interact with people as they fall in love with Missions of Hope and the slums that surround. I get to hear and participate in conversations as they wrestle with tough questions. Does my being here help? Does it hurt? What do I do with this experience when I go back to America? How can this level of poverty exist? Does it ever get easier to hear the stories of those living in Mathare Valley?<br />
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This week we were asked all these things. And my answer to the last question was NO. Although, somehow you get used to it some. But not much. Poverty sucks. It is such a powerful tool of our broken world. It robs people of hope. Of their gifts and talents. Their passions. But we have come to know the stories that accompany poverty this severe. We never accept them. They are never okay and we never get used to them. But we know we are working in a ministry offering hope and love and Jesus. </div>
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In some ways, the stories are not as shocking as they once were, but they never settle well. And sometimes, some stories haunt me.</div>
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The other day a little one came to meet her sponsor. Describing her as adorable would be an understatement. While we waited, she and I took silly faced pictures and laughed. We counted to 10 in English and Kiswahili. Then her sponsor came and I left the room. In the hallway I met her mom briefly. Then her social worker told me her story. </div>
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My new little friend had been absent from school that day and her mother had to bring her to the center to meet her sponsor. I asked if she was sick. No, her mom is a commercial sex worker who didn't get up in time to get her off to school. This story is not an unfamiliar one. </div>
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I walked back into the room where she was hanging out with her sponsor. Her smile lighting up her face. She was delighted in the gifts she was given. Gifts picked out with her in mind. Although, the gifts were awesome, I think the smile came from love. Someone came all the way here to be with her. To hug her. To love on her. To remind her that she is special.</div>
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Her smile stayed on my mind as we left work. It lingered as we got home, ate dinner, watched TV. When I took a shower, she and her mom were heavy on my heart. I am sure her mom does not want to be a prostitute, but she does to survive. To provide. I am guessing with every "customer" she feels the trappings of poverty. The hope being sucked away. Her heart being pushed down deeper and deeper into what seems like an inescapable hole.</div>
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And her daughter, my friend, our student, does she know what mom does. Does mom have to leave her at night to go earn money for the day? Does she work from home? </div>
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As the water rushed over me, tears streamed down my face. I prayed for them. I prayed for the others like them. And then Jesus gently reminded me, like He always does that He is with them. He see them. He loves them. He left the perfection and glory of Heaven to travel this broken earth for them. His death to redeem them. And others like them. And me. You too.</div>
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He reminds me that she is at Missions of Hope. In school getting a great education. He reminds me of her social worker who has one of the biggest hearts of anyone I know. He reminds me of a sponsor who loves her. He reminds me that I got to hug her and share some laughs with her. </div>
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The stories never get easier to hear. I don't want them to. </div>
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In the despair and the ugly, there is Beauty and Hope. Grace and Love. Smiles and laughter. And Jesus. Always Jesus.</div>
Alicia Stewarthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17136453116313101199noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3642560056622979733.post-45433264676989329732013-06-08T02:34:00.001-05:002013-06-08T03:02:44.104-05:00ConstantI never want to glorify "busy". I think there is such a tendency to do that, especially for me. I like having responsibilities and tasks. I enjoy organization and hurriedness. But in this, I can see where "I am so busy" can easily lead to pridefulness etc. That being said, WOW we have been busy lately. Most of our days start very early, even before the sun makes it way up, and we are off to work. We have accepted many new responsbilities. There have been vision trips to South Sudan, fires at our boarding school, Mary has been hospitalized, we have hosted visitors, welcomed the interns, prepared for ALL the teams that will join us this summer. Tim has taken on the role of farmer in addition to the other things he was doing. I continue to coordinate the sponsorship program on this end and will also help facilitate the teams and visitors that come to serve here (with a ton of help from so many others). It's a lot. And it is never ending. And we love it. Most of the time. <br />
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Some days we have have given everything we have and we fall into bed overly tired. You know, that tired where your brain is numb (dead, in many cases), your body aches with exhaustion. We have spent the day(s) switching from role to role, culture to culture, language to language, etc. We wonder how we will be able to do it again the next day. Somedays we really dont think we can. But then:<br />
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He renews our strength.<br />
His mercies are new <i>every single morning</i>.<br />
He gives us all we need.<br />
He shows us how to depend upon him.<br />
He is our all in all.<br />
He pours into us so we may pour it out. Then He refills. Again. And again.<br />
He gives us sweet words from friends to encourage.<br />
He provides.<br />
His grace is sufficient.<br />
He is love, grace, patience when we have none left.<br />
He knows us. <br />
He puts the kids right outside the gate to hug us and laugh with us as we leave MOHi for the day.<br />
He is in the Sunday phones calls with our families.<br />
He gives us video chats with our nephews and our niece.<br />
He prompts friends, families, churches to send a message to encourage.<br />
He gives us (ok, me) quiet mornings on the porch with Him and some coffee.<br />
He gives Tim time on the couch watching sport to relax.<br />
He remains our constant.<br />
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In all the time we have been here, I really think we have had the beautiful chance to see Jesus as the one we can depend upon. Always. He is just our constant. Honestly, there are days where I just do not have it in me. Whatever <b><i>it</i></b> is, and yet He gives what I need to make it through the end of the day. He gives this incredible rest to us at night and allows us to be refreshed each morning. With all my heart, I KNOW, we just could not do it without Him providing for each and every need.<br />
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Why we get to do this, I do not know. We love it here. Even on the hardest days. In just some few short months, we have seen so much more of Jesus then ever before. He is truth. Love. Hope. Friend. Redeemer. Restorer. Everything. <br />
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Please continue to pray for Mary in the hospital. In addition to everything else, we have also seen God as healer. Everyday she gets stronger. The glow in her face has returned. She is at peace. Pray for Missions of Hope. As God continues to grow this ministry, as the hope of Christ is shown we remain aware of the need to attack and destroy that. We feel that so much even now. We know things that are not bearing fruit have no need to be destroyed, so in the challenges, we thank God for the big things he has done, is doing, and is going to do. Please join us in praying for these things.<br />
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Oh and He also gives us this. This blesses my soul. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjK94aSyaOgWd6_LIIUV3ZHaJJS-lIpgsNq5wkiQuveXwrdkkE11LPH0L76TpW43-TylwuNhyj-SXPE4PI7IBjpHmiW20a8A-fhYux8KsL0XsKuCZrtRub5ndgk-lf_39B_fhWl8-t15EHx/s640/blogger-image--86565372.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjK94aSyaOgWd6_LIIUV3ZHaJJS-lIpgsNq5wkiQuveXwrdkkE11LPH0L76TpW43-TylwuNhyj-SXPE4PI7IBjpHmiW20a8A-fhYux8KsL0XsKuCZrtRub5ndgk-lf_39B_fhWl8-t15EHx/s640/blogger-image--86565372.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Right outside the gate are these sweet, sweet kids. </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQfv-JlW5UdzE6KCtkf3Vk69PjD9AFDtO5mNVSnuw0oFOu_JjqQw8mFhHzXKbj5jdFgl7s3O3L6CuGCWTs_OMFzI4mpLLr-NIUXBF-scDOke5iKyuniqX8q9AhaDxE24_dWxVOqGv4DfCc/s640/blogger-image--781704307.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQfv-JlW5UdzE6KCtkf3Vk69PjD9AFDtO5mNVSnuw0oFOu_JjqQw8mFhHzXKbj5jdFgl7s3O3L6CuGCWTs_OMFzI4mpLLr-NIUXBF-scDOke5iKyuniqX8q9AhaDxE24_dWxVOqGv4DfCc/s640/blogger-image--781704307.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Great Rift Valley is one of the most beautiful places and it is about 90 minutes drives from our house. Stunning!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimPWIGZRT3wV1ppnetBQDsBr9zHC-G_syZ4lGPsj0jxtcwwNCqBfMhjwUG7AURZDa5gL3QtLWH5WEryBZSxgDj6LOTKybvONCH3ZNhh5a75DAKJtynnQ7ZiHcVFc41UnJiaklsMqw-Wq_W/s640/blogger-image-727244635.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimPWIGZRT3wV1ppnetBQDsBr9zHC-G_syZ4lGPsj0jxtcwwNCqBfMhjwUG7AURZDa5gL3QtLWH5WEryBZSxgDj6LOTKybvONCH3ZNhh5a75DAKJtynnQ7ZiHcVFc41UnJiaklsMqw-Wq_W/s640/blogger-image-727244635.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Seriously, how could you not love being surround by these children!</td></tr>
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Alicia Stewarthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17136453116313101199noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3642560056622979733.post-57050187679211391142013-04-23T12:28:00.001-05:002013-04-23T12:46:46.045-05:00I wonderThe kids are on break until May 6 which means all of our high school students are back at home and are easily accessible. We decided to update their photos and current information today. One of the best parts, though, was that we got to take a group photo of the Form 4 students (our equivalent of a Senior). This special group contains some of the first 50 students recruited to Missions of Hope. The first. This is so monumental. The first kids will soon graduate from high school and go on to do awesome things.<br />
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This morning as I got ready for the day I was thinking about what that must have been like for these kids. I wonder what their parent(s) thought when Mary recruited them to school? Did they think it was just another person wanting to "help" them because they were poor or did they notice the something different,the something very special in her? I wonder if they dreamed of the future for these children. Did they thank God for an answer to a prayer? I wonder what they thought when the small building at the school's initial site became a towering beacon in the slums? A building that can be seen from the super highway! What did they think when visitors came to their houses to pray with them and share the love of Christ? When someone assisted them in paying school fees through sponsorship. When the school went from one school to two to 17. What must have happened in their hearts when their kids went out to the boarding school and then passed their 8th grade national exam? I wonder what must they have thought when they were no longer given handouts or relief, but rather empowered to use the skills and talents God gave them to better their lives, their children's lives, and the world around them? What must they be thinking now as their kids enter their 2nd term of their last year of high school?<br />
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Before that; however, while we waiting for the high schoolers to show up (some things are the same no matter what continent you are on!) I went outside the gate to see what was going on. Two sweet, little ones RAN up to me and jumped into my arms (it is no secret that I love this and I literally think my heart will explode sometimes). In my best Swahili, I asked them their names, where they lived and where their school was. They said "here" and pointed to Missions of Hope. They are in nursery class. The littlest kids at our school. New ones. So I wonder, where will life take them? How will their recruitment to Missions of Hope school change their life? What did their parent(s) think when our social workers invited them to school? When their children come home with a head full of new things? When their kids are smiling because they KNOW they are loved. I wonder if they thank God for an answered prayer. If this renewed their hope. If it displayed the love of Jesus to them. <br />
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What the future holds for these kids only God knows. But I wonder, will I work alongside of them at Missions of Hope someday. After they finish college or university, will they give back to the place that gave to them. Will they be my doctor when I am sick? Will they become a welder and make windows and desks for our schools? Will they hold public office? Will one of them be president? I wonder if they will pastor a church? or be a missionary? Will they stand up against injustice? Will they fight against the power of poverty? <br />
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I wonder.Alicia Stewarthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17136453116313101199noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3642560056622979733.post-5423873400979981352013-01-19T03:44:00.001-06:002013-01-21T10:08:40.773-06:00In the gapI never know exactly how to start these blogs. How to start sharing what is pouring out of my heart and my coffee fueled mind. So I am just gonna begin and see where it leads. I am ever so thankful for what we are being taught. How we get to see things through the eyes of people who are here for the long haul. Things look so much different for us now. Our feet are planted here and we are growing roots. As we do that our perspective changes so much.<br />
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We work in a place that has an abundance of problems and needs. If you have been here (or some place similar), seen photos, or heard stories you know what I mean. For every need met, about a billion more arise and stare you in the face. At times, it can feel like walking in quicksand or running on treadmill. Working so hard, but not really "going" anywhere. <br />
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People come and visit or hear of the ministry and immediately begin to think of ways to fix it all (confession: I am very guilty of this!). And we want the problem solved like yesterday. Faster than immediate. We meet a family, they share a need, we jump into saviour mode. And in many ways our compassion is awesome and admirable. The problem is-we aren't the saviour. At all. We certainly get to be a part of sharing his love with the world, but we are not Him. And in the rush to meet needs and the frustration that can follow when those needs are not met how and when we think they should be sometimes I think we are missing the most important part of the equation. Jesus.<br />
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The ministry we are a part of moves so quickly. And so slowly. Simultaneously. Missions of Hope has experienced tremendous growth in a few short years, but the work being done here is at times moves at what feels like a snail's pace. To me. To us. To Jesus, it is moving exactly how it should. We aren't just getting kids in school, or helping parents start businesses, or teaching health lessons and so on and so on. Along with all these things, there needs to be a change of mind and more importantly a change of heart for this to be lasting. To be sustaining. And those sort of changes just take time.<br />
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This week there has been a lot of that swirling around me. Stories that have crushed my heart. People with ideas and fervor to change them. Right.This. Second. But so many times, right this second isn't going to happen. And this week I have been struck so many times by the phrase "in the gap". <br />
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In the gap. The space between. The time that elapses. Jesus is in that. He is so much in that. And in that space, He is enough. Actually,He is so much more than enough. For all these families and children who capture our hearts, He loves them more. I think these kid's smiles give me joy, but they give him even more. He delights in them. And their families. Their neighbors. He sees so much more about them than anyone else ever will. Their needs, desires, dreams, heartaches, stories NEVER escape him. When they hurt, he is with them. While they wait (while we wait), he is beside them (and us), when they rejoice, he does too. <br />
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And I think this is not to be overlooked as we work to share His love. In the meantime, while we get frustrated or annoyed with the time something is taking to happen Jesus knows exactly when and how it is all this is going to work out. We are tasked with trusting him. With waiting on him. In the gap.<br />
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While God is working in us, giving us the desire and power to do what pleases him (Phil 2:13), it is probably worth remembering that He is still enough. I do what I can with what He gives me and then I trust him, place my faith in Him to do the rest. <br />
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As we continue to work here, as you continue to work where you are or where you are going, as you come here to work, let us remember that Christ is present in the gap. He is enough. Always. He cares, He loves, He sees. He is also in the business of bringing the Kingdom of Heaven to Earth in <em><strong>his </strong></em>ever so perfect timing. So in the meantime, let us do what we can with what we have been given and may we patiently wait upon Him, while standing in the gap <em><strong>with</strong></em> them.<br />
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(I definitely recognize how weird it is that<strong><em><u> I</u></em></strong> would be talking about having patience. If God is teaching me anything it is about patience. And I don't always learn the easy way. I love that God is showing me the beauty of waiting. I love that he has is changing my heart in a way that I get to be the one who says "it will happen when the time is right" "it is okay to wait" etc. I sound like Tim :)Alicia Stewarthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17136453116313101199noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3642560056622979733.post-52323181258751777592013-01-02T02:21:00.000-06:002013-01-02T06:39:45.755-06:00A New Year and Finally a New Post!It is hard to believe it is 2013 already. Also hard to believe it has been over 3 months since we have updated our blog. <br />
<br />
On this day last year, we were both getting over the flu and heading to Colorado for 5 weeks for missionary school. We knew we would be leaving for Kenya soon, but we still had no departure date. Everything was so unknown to us and "being in limbo" had taken on totally new meaning. Transition was the best way to describe our lives.<br />
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And now, on this day, I sit in our home in Nairobi. We are just a few days away from being here for 10 months. So close to a whole year and that plane ride to Colorado seems like ages ago. Without a doubt, the transition has continued. And will continue for quite some time, but with it has come some settlement and routine. This has likely been the most paradoxical year of our lives. It has been the hardest and the easiest. Filled with many tears and so much joy. Full of challenges and accomplishments. A great deal of confusion and normalcy. More goodbyes and hellos than have ever been said in our lives (probably combined). We have learned more about who we are and about each other. We have been frustrated and happy. Pick an emotion and we have likely felt it at its extreme. It feels like we just arrived and yet have been here forever. It seems like the more we learn, the more there is to learn. We have learned dependence and independence. We have learned shillings and forgot what dollars look like. We have learned driving on the other sideof the road and the car. We have learned exhaustion and energized. We have done Christmas together and apart from our families at the same time. We have learned how to make things from scratch and to be thankful when people send us food and other great things that we love. We have learned that distance changes relationships. Sometimes for the better, sometimes not. We have tried to support friends who are hurting from afar and felt the sting of the many miles that seperate. We have felt love from others like never before.<br />
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As I reflect (isn't that customary for the first of the year?) my cheeks are stained with tears (no surprise in that). We are where we should be. In the midst of the negative emotions we have experienced, we have experienced peace like never before. We have been waiting to be here for so long. And here we are. We missed the holidays with loved ones, but God gave us people we love here to spend time with. It was kind of great to be celebrating Jesus in the place He has brought us to share His love. <br />
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We are overwhelmed with thankfulness almost daily. Thankful to God for sustaining us. For allowing us to be a part of this. Thankful for new friends and old ones. Thankful for supporters. Those who support financially, prayerfully, and through regular encouragement. Thankful for our families and the way they make time to share our lives with us and keep us inolved in their lives.<br />
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<em>And may you have the power to understand, as all God's people should, how wide, how long, how high, and how deep his love is. Ephesians 3:18</em><br />
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We are quite literally drowning in God's love. All the time. Every single second of every single day. For this we are most thankful. Our prayer is that 2013 is full of blessings for you. May you be aware of how saturating the love of God really is. Alicia Stewarthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17136453116313101199noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3642560056622979733.post-6618633655594932352012-09-29T13:08:00.000-05:002012-09-29T13:16:00.712-05:00PourSeveral times in the past few months a visitor has asked if their coming to Missions of Hope really matters. Is it really worth it they ask. And of course we say yes, because it is worth it and it does matter. The last person to ask this really wanted to know why and how. How their team made a difference when so many others have been here doing VBS, a medical camp, Bring the Light, etc. And to that I replied that it seemed like a big container that was being filled one small teaspoon at a time. Every drop of water fills the pitcher slowly by slowly, and at times it can be hard to see how one small amount makes any difference. (Disclaimer, those words must have come from the Spirit because I had never really thought about it that way before-thankful He gives me words to speak).<br />
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Every time someone comes and plays games, shares Bible stories, songs, snacks, hugs with these kids, it matters. You pour. When people share the light of Christ in the homes and the community, the pitcher fills a little more. When teams spend time with the staff washing their feet, encouraging them, training and assisting them, getting to know them etc. Another teaspoon goes in. When you eat in our home and allow us to see this place and this ministry through your eyes, you pour. When teams return to their homes and share about their trip and ways to get involved, the water in the cup rises a little. When you leave and are never the same again-you guessed it-more pouring.<br />
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For those of us who remain, there really isn't a day that goes by where we are not aware of how much the pouring in matters. We see happy children who are still excited by your visit. Kids who remember the songs and memory verses you taught them. We see new schools being built as a result of your giving. We see gifts and such sweet letters being sent to the students as sponsors build a beautiful relationship with them. We see the Business department work tirelessly to keep up with all the new businesses and loans happening because of BigDent. We see people finding hope in hopelessness. Living in the light of Christ. <br />
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As Americans, many of us tend to be task oriented. We want to see the end results, a project completed, some numbers to share. I know this very well. Kind of embarrassingly, I delight in my to-do list being completed. I even give myself little check marks as I complete a task. I am really finding the beauty in the slowness of the cup-filling. The planting seeds but perhaps never seeing the harvest. This isn't about what I or you can accomplish. What we can tick off a list, but about going and just doing. Allowing God to complete this. A reminder that He has the control. Long before we came and long after we are gone, He is still about the cup running over. About fruit. About eternity.<br />
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Keep pouring. We may not always see the pitcher filled, the fruit harvested, but it's happening. Slowly by slowly. Drop by drop. Alicia Stewarthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17136453116313101199noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3642560056622979733.post-23758131553298267872012-09-09T04:43:00.000-05:002012-09-09T05:53:19.593-05:00The DistanceYesterday, I was blessed to go to coffee with Kathy (CMF missionary) (side note: so thankful to live in a place that I can get some awesome treats). As we were chatting, she asked how we were doing. I think Tim and I get asked this question at least 4 times per week. She asked about various stages of culture shock and which one we thought we might be in-if any at all. After a pause, I answered her with a "we just feel normal." And we do. As I left the house that morning to meet her, I thought of how it just feels like regular life here. We have a routine. Certain routes we take. We buy groceries, veggies, meat at "our" places. We work, come home, make dinner, chill, go to bed. We get frustrated. We would be lying if we said we didn't. We get confused, feel uncertain, get sad. We miss our families. Our friends. But like I told Kathy, in this we have this peace and this joy unlike anything we have ever experienced. <br />
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It is so strange too because this peace and this joy are just there. They seem to just hang in the air unnoticed. We aren't generally bursting with joy, yet we feel it in the depths. The peace is just a regular everyday calmness. Perhaps it is the ease of normalcy. Until we are asked about how we are doing we hardly think about it and yet we know it's there. <br />
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The other day someone we love posted this verse on facebook <a href="http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=matt%2019:27-30&version=NIV" target="_blank">Matt 19:27-30</a> and said it caused her to think of us (what an amazing compliment). As I read those familiar verses, I couldn't help but think of the joy we have been given since we got here. How, even though we miss those we love SO much, we are at peace. This makes me love Jesus even more. We are asked to follow. To be obedient. We aren't owed anything by Him, we have received life forever which is more than enough and YET He gives beautiful gifts to us so abundantly. So richly. And for Tim and I, so often. In this, some things barely feel like a sacrifice, but more like awesomeness! Who are we that we get to do this!<br />
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But today, we feel this sacrifice. In our hearts, it weighs so heavily. We got a message yesterday that one of our closest friend's father passed away suddenly. In that moment, we wanted nothing more than to hop in the car and go to them. To hug them, to love them. To take their kids to the park or something so they could mourn together, make arrangements, whatever. And we can't. No matter how much we are aching for this, it cannot be done. So we must rely on technology to connect us. And most importantly, prayer. I have spent most of the morning praying for them. Praying that Jesus will give them so many people to do the things we want to do but can't. He will because He loves them. And so A LOT of other people.<br />
<br />
Today this distance has settled in our hearts. It feels funny. We feel so in the middle today. We want to be there, but yet want to be here. We can't have both. We love life here, but miss people there. Both of these things are okay-yet they feel conflicting. <br />
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In January, we will have a new nephew. He will likely be a year and a half old when we get to kiss his face, hold him, change a diaper. Those are now our realities. What a paradox our life is now. As we navigate this new normal, we are so thankful for the riches poured out on us and on those we love. Thankful for pizza, chicken wings, and belly laughs with new friends. For coffee and pastries with someone I look up to. For technology so we can see the faces and hear voices of the ones we love. For ease in transition. For frustrations and uncertainties that cause us to seek out the face of Jesus. For reliance on the Spirit dwelling in our hearts.<br />
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Today the distance feels far. Today the paradox is so real, so fresh. Please, please lift our friends up in prayer. If you know who we are talking about, please love on them a little extra for us. Alicia Stewarthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17136453116313101199noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3642560056622979733.post-10039868801942077792012-07-31T13:29:00.001-05:002012-07-31T13:29:46.746-05:00A Random UpdateI cannot even count the number of blogs I have written in the past 2 months in my head. Too bad none of them actually got out of my head and onto the screen! These past 2 months have moved so quickly and have been so crazy. Some days I feel as though we live in the middle of a tornado. But we love it. We are certainly learning what it looks like to live here and to work here by doing. There is really no watching. Things move too fast. There have been so many teams and other visitors in the past two months. We have met a ton of people, answered questions, asked questions, ate dinners with new friends, worked alongside people who want to share love to those living here, and been constantly reminded of the overwhelming presence of God here. Each night we fall into bed and sleep soundly. This is generally after we have already been asleep on the couch for awhile. Our energy and hearts are being poured out daily. This is the best kind of exhaustion.<br />
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Sometimes, however, all of this makes us grouchy. It brings out our flaws and insecurities. We totally get to see who we are under pressure or when things aren't how we pictured them that day, that moment, or that week. We get to decide who we want to be. Will we extend grace? Will we show love? Will we have patience? Will we change things that aren't healthy or good? This might be what some would call gut-check time. Or perhaps heart-check time.<br />
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I would love to say we always choose the best. But let's be honest-you know us. We just don't. It stinks sometimes to reflect on the day knowing you could have shown more grace or been more patient or relaxed about something just a little more. On the flip side of that, I love seeing the things in myself that need repaired. Or seeing things in others that we want to avoid. <br />
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We have learned so quickly that our lives will now be full of goodbyes. They seem to be a constant. Just a few hours ago we said goodbye to 14 interns that we got to know pretty well this summer. We have welcomed teams and other people and we have also said farewell to them. We had family and close friends in our home and spent some awesome time with them. And then we said goodbye. Again. We have more people coming. And going. Although the goodbyes are not nearly as fun as the hellos, it is so awesome to be meeting people from all over the place with whom we share a passion.<br />
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We are so comfortable in our home. Especially when its clean :) We have hosted several teams, friends, and the interns. I have been driving myself around a little more and Tim continues to be the pro. Pretty sure he was born a Kenyan driver. We are getting to know more and more of our<br />
co-workers and are really enjoying them so much.<br />
<br />
We miss our family and our friends. We love it when we get to talk with them or "see" them. Even though at times we ache to be near them, we are so constantly assured that we are where we ought to be. Where we want to be. Sometimes I can't believe how comfortable we are here. Even at the end of the longest days, we love it here. Even when days are challenging, we want to be here. <br />
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Our minds our constantly spinning with all of these things combined with continuing to learn about Missions of Hope, Nairobi, meeting visitors, keep up with far away loved ones, connecting with each other, and with Christ. Thanks to you all for you thoughts, prayers, and constant encouragement. They are a precious gift to us.<br />
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So this is the randomness that has been in my head and heart for the past two months. Finally, it has found its place on the screen!<br />
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<br />Alicia Stewarthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17136453116313101199noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3642560056622979733.post-76690909212516706152012-05-30T07:28:00.000-05:002012-05-30T08:10:49.201-05:00Finally some picturesFinally, we are posting some pictures. I cannot figure out how to get the layout of these to look the way I want so this was the best i could do :) If you are our friend on Facebook, you might have seen some of these pictures, but if you aren't we wanted to share a little bit about the place we call home with you. Well, just the outside. We are still working on the inside. Today, someone is here sewing us new couch covers and in a few weeks the team from West Side will be bringing more of our household goods. After that we can give you a glimpse of the inside. We love this place and feel so comfortable here. I just told Tim last night that I think I feel safer here than a few others places I have lived in. Perhaps that is because our door bolts into the wall, ceiling, and floor, there are bars on the windows, and we are on the fourth floor. Who knows?!?!<br />
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Some of the others are on our way to work and at work. We really don't take our camera with us much so our selection of photos is a little limited. Enjoy!!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4SQi_qnnkYvdEVGB_IOhSGVbW3uMxutWJVfqNg2AHMOwiAe4HBJMJXXAYhGEYxBqOv8kan4ZoZXKdSBzwap9YO3IXVTLnYWh1vxJbWvBjtAYuIhdGyswtYfSCQOhDuJWB6ONp6bbHI79m/s1600/IMG_0507.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4SQi_qnnkYvdEVGB_IOhSGVbW3uMxutWJVfqNg2AHMOwiAe4HBJMJXXAYhGEYxBqOv8kan4ZoZXKdSBzwap9YO3IXVTLnYWh1vxJbWvBjtAYuIhdGyswtYfSCQOhDuJWB6ONp6bbHI79m/s640/IMG_0507.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">We didn't know when we moved in we would have <br />
lake-front property (only during rainy season).. <br />
Or a breeding ground for mosquitos!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi62Fua7SwcHZ3kStE7NT1djbZSdacCAL6L6tWI_91lLSg8Pyln1hLdzhxEFUS38ScGytyzVrCIiPmpWNTK8Hgf5DsVjbzjxJWETbB_bbq18oE5JyZ-jFErHDm1bgjtxm2VyN2uYZlx_ijQ/s1600/IMG_0511.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi62Fua7SwcHZ3kStE7NT1djbZSdacCAL6L6tWI_91lLSg8Pyln1hLdzhxEFUS38ScGytyzVrCIiPmpWNTK8Hgf5DsVjbzjxJWETbB_bbq18oE5JyZ-jFErHDm1bgjtxm2VyN2uYZlx_ijQ/s640/IMG_0511.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Where we do our laundry</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGbxwmLAgYNTDhLKC2p_sOsza0V1Sz5ELB578YagSwACzW7e3-P8wrRL-USeuzdGNqyyLvv768gHV8f7WUAmkLnnFc6-sVOTRb5mZqjFtbZ7H6WbvBc0FfzU9XGlaYh7BySa35wiFXuEDx/s1600/IMG_0528.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGbxwmLAgYNTDhLKC2p_sOsza0V1Sz5ELB578YagSwACzW7e3-P8wrRL-USeuzdGNqyyLvv768gHV8f7WUAmkLnnFc6-sVOTRb5mZqjFtbZ7H6WbvBc0FfzU9XGlaYh7BySa35wiFXuEDx/s640/IMG_0528.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The road to work</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWSkyllFueS3uA2uzfdPzVkGTwLIdwQfpn7Ek1WNnXNgdPrVPbSRXALfcCGGa7x-8NnXFCkDcItfZbkw8QNb850kLg9AVZzaIxXpSnomHKDuV5EyhFBdmfwWejnkuGAUEEL2r4qtE1_OaO/s1600/IMG_0544.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWSkyllFueS3uA2uzfdPzVkGTwLIdwQfpn7Ek1WNnXNgdPrVPbSRXALfcCGGa7x-8NnXFCkDcItfZbkw8QNb850kLg9AVZzaIxXpSnomHKDuV5EyhFBdmfwWejnkuGAUEEL2r4qtE1_OaO/s640/IMG_0544.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Juja Road. We turn off of this road to get to the center. <br />
There are just a few obstacles to watch out for.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2Q2vqnY8U-fPGQPT6KtrBGDny-TBStR-9c59L3HWLVWQ2wmWMEwr0WMNZ9DUFWnCkKFFPnKYNILw-Hacx98LLddnlPZ2e2v4bQoRPz4rCbpoPJmWL7vyQ2fHrmDSoQuCMtBzRZH5LyY-u/s1600/IMG_0550.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2Q2vqnY8U-fPGQPT6KtrBGDny-TBStR-9c59L3HWLVWQ2wmWMEwr0WMNZ9DUFWnCkKFFPnKYNILw-Hacx98LLddnlPZ2e2v4bQoRPz4rCbpoPJmWL7vyQ2fHrmDSoQuCMtBzRZH5LyY-u/s640/IMG_0550.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Missions of Hope Center.<br />
Where we work </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEia_rroyY6tQJHBqNucl-nNCml8LnLu2ykjjRBxUYCaYnHTd08mmgfTeDGrB10YY5DupC7w3529OI9R5yW8CTXVANpR-I4vfh2sF67nvC7UIW9LIpjB8kz0-7a-0LhU3AfmzQw4X8KOuzm1/s1600/IMG_0494.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEia_rroyY6tQJHBqNucl-nNCml8LnLu2ykjjRBxUYCaYnHTd08mmgfTeDGrB10YY5DupC7w3529OI9R5yW8CTXVANpR-I4vfh2sF67nvC7UIW9LIpjB8kz0-7a-0LhU3AfmzQw4X8KOuzm1/s640/IMG_0494.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Always construction. And for awhile<br />
there was also always rain.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKf9iEqleZbuDoyamAGH6B4iWgrFis7MK128PdD53KTAm7iRmSYWNqsNVvX0AAYl4lCo_D0r43zGgea2vbPkQ09XXOblc6Tm1xDOlkgxrov-7wIRfeLIWWZLK4Omnw4Szy-ZiP0Fh66SBv/s1600/IMG_0486.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKf9iEqleZbuDoyamAGH6B4iWgrFis7MK128PdD53KTAm7iRmSYWNqsNVvX0AAYl4lCo_D0r43zGgea2vbPkQ09XXOblc6Tm1xDOlkgxrov-7wIRfeLIWWZLK4Omnw4Szy-ZiP0Fh66SBv/s640/IMG_0486.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Cooking dinner by candlelight.<br />
We lose power sometimes and usually right in the middle<br />
of doing something important.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0oYyn8bfBQQ_AeaMaV0NoaTSvSSX5idpU315fU_9Yv56fNBxIUwdeCPI71YSp_YtcYbcbkRJcQ_2j-DFxTSgBiGoCW7cMX4p9R7D14QwTfrdAf-v25HJW8iqVHEO6BChtblzxsdh8S6jG/s1600/IMG_0490.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0oYyn8bfBQQ_AeaMaV0NoaTSvSSX5idpU315fU_9Yv56fNBxIUwdeCPI71YSp_YtcYbcbkRJcQ_2j-DFxTSgBiGoCW7cMX4p9R7D14QwTfrdAf-v25HJW8iqVHEO6BChtblzxsdh8S6jG/s640/IMG_0490.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">View from Missions of Hope Center.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvC9bz3SvoFpAbza7dIZArFPhiExCPZdi5dqntexrpwsv5zx9fY8oJIotbOwdM61ant1US8dLzDKuIleebF6dtxPufhbZCQtMFRuxpuLVTnZq-HEuovw-jFf1vgKX_nYjEywc6eNPeS14d/s1600/IMG_0281.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvC9bz3SvoFpAbza7dIZArFPhiExCPZdi5dqntexrpwsv5zx9fY8oJIotbOwdM61ant1US8dLzDKuIleebF6dtxPufhbZCQtMFRuxpuLVTnZq-HEuovw-jFf1vgKX_nYjEywc6eNPeS14d/s640/IMG_0281.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">We might have used some of the money we<br />
got from selling our car to go to the beach<br />
to celebrate our anniversary.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigcNAXGRinx4diogEro0bWDK2c6BDWJTSQBP13odivPpOfRLBQNptpqTk5SzngFUzgjz8hoxmkV92f4-tHNYwpbizcEbw-LkWNpyYrKYXYOR96D88iN-fWyt57NfMio9TcKXjUCDUlWugF/s1600/IMG_0288.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigcNAXGRinx4diogEro0bWDK2c6BDWJTSQBP13odivPpOfRLBQNptpqTk5SzngFUzgjz8hoxmkV92f4-tHNYwpbizcEbw-LkWNpyYrKYXYOR96D88iN-fWyt57NfMio9TcKXjUCDUlWugF/s640/IMG_0288.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I might have cried because it was so amazing.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSfGCoSLzLV9v0ZNSOuNdwlUqREejT0h6HaVv05WhE_ghJbWJkw8XvRRalwYF5VKSzq8R1EMKyJUD8O-49X2AAycrqytSxGq99ZFBmWRQUNwTpTQ61rA0EuRnj4a9nwKt5PzM5Omsdpj2g/s1600/IMG_0502.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSfGCoSLzLV9v0ZNSOuNdwlUqREejT0h6HaVv05WhE_ghJbWJkw8XvRRalwYF5VKSzq8R1EMKyJUD8O-49X2AAycrqytSxGq99ZFBmWRQUNwTpTQ61rA0EuRnj4a9nwKt5PzM5Omsdpj2g/s640/IMG_0502.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">View from the front porch.<br />
The large black things you see are the water tanks.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzzag2jyNPleyLAj5gsBoCuX1FqmCczQEMfLsUjx91x1VMg2j4zH5RnG3OymlbDnDkhi2rI8I_yrYKqD1zLJhlZzUrW-JiI7Yd4n9Br8l4WyBKfb5lKoHYcDTermDTZ9opMRdoQVRfFHO2/s1600/IMG_0503.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzzag2jyNPleyLAj5gsBoCuX1FqmCczQEMfLsUjx91x1VMg2j4zH5RnG3OymlbDnDkhi2rI8I_yrYKqD1zLJhlZzUrW-JiI7Yd4n9Br8l4WyBKfb5lKoHYcDTermDTZ9opMRdoQVRfFHO2/s640/IMG_0503.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">View of our street. At the end and across the street<br />
is a fruits and vegetable market.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEif6n-hj7KUQJQfmKsZzDrmqfprURUiuosUkV8LSPGqMP_dxfzS9GhdKiwKNs5XnFhChb2PV6xKDQ3s05qy373FLumZmjnqqSfmVXMMMp6Avbzh4fXBGO4SId14eIDYIhdlWSYew9VeW1AN/s1600/IMG_0521.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEif6n-hj7KUQJQfmKsZzDrmqfprURUiuosUkV8LSPGqMP_dxfzS9GhdKiwKNs5XnFhChb2PV6xKDQ3s05qy373FLumZmjnqqSfmVXMMMp6Avbzh4fXBGO4SId14eIDYIhdlWSYew9VeW1AN/s640/IMG_0521.JPG" title="" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"> What I assume would be the google earth<br />
street view!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYmV82-UxuAoMn0Taly5vV3BLfU8pcYc8SZsT3XM4epXUphQYjvVB9uS57izTSffcIl9NbXLj5d6a_0pWS78tYlUO1LRE5T__ktXmfrTI7Pq00WL1qWASz9rCsT3HJ6DQtvknNPeI0l15C/s1600/IMG_0561.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="264" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYmV82-UxuAoMn0Taly5vV3BLfU8pcYc8SZsT3XM4epXUphQYjvVB9uS57izTSffcIl9NbXLj5d6a_0pWS78tYlUO1LRE5T__ktXmfrTI7Pq00WL1qWASz9rCsT3HJ6DQtvknNPeI0l15C/s640/IMG_0561.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The sunset we can see from the back porch. So incredible!</td></tr>
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<br /></div>Alicia Stewarthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17136453116313101199noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3642560056622979733.post-46739969728495292112012-05-30T06:22:00.000-05:002012-05-30T08:12:39.648-05:00An almost new normal...Over that past few days, several of the people we were in training with in Colorado have written blogs or shared articles about the challenges that come with moving to another country. It doesn't matter where you go, it is just hard to assimilate into another world, another culture. When we first got here, everything was exhausting to us. Some stuff still is now. People would always ask us what we did and why we were so tired and some days our answer was as simple as "we went to the grocery store." Of course, it took over 3 hours, but still a trip to the store is not usually so tiring. But it is when it is different. And overwhelming. And you don't quite get how to do the exchange rate so you end up buying over $30 worth of chicken (not that this happened to us or anything!). Everyone looks different than you. Speaks differently (and we live somewhere where English is spoken regularly). They know how the systems work and they move through them with ease. While you as just trying to get by. The newness and cultural overload left us so incredibly tired. Ten hours of sleep a night was not nearly enough. Working short days would feel like you combined 2 days into one. Sometimes just getting in the car and arriving at work was draining.<br />
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But now....we do many of these things with a great deal of ease. We have a few grocery stores we frequent and we know where things are and what we like and what we don't. We have a butchery we go to. We can even split up at the store and shop alone to get our list finished a little faster. We can drive to work even when the road we normally travel is unexpectedly closed. We can find our way around town with a little help from a map. All these things make us feel so great most days. There has been such improvement. such transformation since we got here. Just the other day they closed a road and we ended up on some random side road down by the river-a place I am pretty sure we didn't need to be, but once we got back on the main road, I said to Tim, "hey, I didn't even freak out when we were lost!" That is huge improvement! Even with all of this there is so much more to learn. Bargaining is a huge part of buying things here and we have a huge fruits and veggie market down that block, but we haven't gone yet. We just aren't ready to bargain for everything. One thing at a time. It's a marathon, not a sprint.<br />
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A typical day for us is getting up, getting ready, and leaving for work. Not unlike in the U.S. we still prefer sleep to breakfast, so I grab some hot tea and we both get some small snack to eat at work. Then we head to work. It takes about 10 minutes to get there which is so great. We have to drive through the outskirts of the slums, so Tim is avoiding people, animals, cars, potholes, etc. I consider it success when we make it to work unscathed. For the past few weeks, we have been sitting in the admin office sorting and processing letters, gifts, and thank you cards. This past Friday, we got our new desks and saw our offices. I am with some great women. One is the head teacher, another is the supervisor of social work and others work for Human Resources. Tim is in the Spiritual Development office. We have yet to sit at our desks and work as we are at home this week waiting for some work to be done in our house. We are having a fundi (or skilled worker, in this case a dude who sews) come to our home and recover our couch cushions. Our couch is a hand-me-down and we really like it, but the covers are very worn so we needed them done and really want them to look like "us". We have spent a good portion of the past 3 days waiting for the fundi to show up (another cultural experience :) But we can't wait to see the end result.<br />
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Thanks to those of you who have been constantly praying for our transition. I really think it is grasping a hold of the small things that will give longevity to our lives here. God has been so gracious to us as we have adjusted. It hasn't even been 3 months and we feel so comfortable at work, getting to work, at home, at the store, etc. We are making friends and have been able to easily keep in touch with family and friends who are far away. We are really beginning to feel as though we are developing a new normal. So those prayers for things that don't seem like much have been both answered and huge for us. I can't tell you how great it felt yesterday for us to park on the street and for Tim to go pay a bill and me to head off the opposite way ALONE to shop. Oh, but please don't stop praying for us and our transition. We have only scratched the surface of all there is to learn and to know.Alicia Stewarthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17136453116313101199noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3642560056622979733.post-53802172850890791722012-05-10T11:51:00.000-05:002012-05-10T11:51:19.360-05:00That Moment When.....<br />
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You know that awesome moment when you went to Kenya 4 years ago and met these great women who really touched your heart, but you thought you would never see them again, but then you run into one of them in the hallway at work? Me too. I love it. It happened Tuesday. This <span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #990000;"><a href="http://thestewartsinafrica.blogspot.com/2008/07/something-good.html" target="_blank">blog</a> </span>explains a little more about them. Winnie was one of the ladies who really captured our hearts (she is sitting the photo above). She has this smile that is absolutely contagious and when she sees you she is so genuinely excited to be with you. She does not speak English well and we do not speak Swahili well so we have never really been able to talk to her, but we have never had trouble communicating our joy. When we were support raising, we told the story of Winnie several times because she just impacted us so much.<br />
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Honestly, I never thought we would see her again. Sometimes, those things make me sad, but I know that part of life is loving others, planting hope within them and many times you move on. A lot of times you just don't get to know what happens. You pray for the best and trust these beautiful souls to Jesus. <br />
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So, you can imagine my surprise when I walked out into the hallway on Tuesday and ran RIGHT INTO Winnie. And the best part is, she remembered me. And Tim. Her face lit up and we hugged and squealed. Then I yelled to Tim and he was so excited. We "talked" for a only few minutes because she was there to see a teacher. What that means is 1)She is still alive!! 2) She is still around and is doing well 3)Her kids are getting a fantastic education. Tim and I were so ecstatic I thought our hearts might burst.<br />
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What made all this even more special was that on Monday night we had been talking about how "doing ministry" has looked a lot different for us this time than it did as interns. When we were interns we were always in the community, sharing Christ, forming relationships, hugging kids, encouraging others, being with the people. For a few weeks we did some of that, but now we sit in an office. We read, sort, and prepare letters and gifts from sponsors for the students. It is so great and I wish there was a way to communicate to you the relationship that is being built across thousands of miles. Simply by the written word. And a few stickers. Most sponsors and their sponsored kid(s) will never meet, but there is such a love communicated through letters, cards, and gifts small enough to fit in an envelope. We love this, but it seems different. Because, well, it IS different. <br />
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This conversation began because someone commented on this photo on Facebook and mentioned it being a picture of God's call on our lives (still can't believe God asked <i><b>us</b></i> to come and love on these precious ones. As a job!). And it is. Yes, 4 years ago we walked around and hugged on kiddos ALOT and since we absolutely adore these children it is one of the biggest ways in which we fell in love with this place and this ministry, but now we are getting to be such a part of the backbone of this ministry. Still the kids of course, but also the school, and the Hope Partnership Child Sponsorship program. Everyday, not only do we get to see these faces and hear them playing, we get to be a part of continuing to connect them with someone across the globe who loves them. We get to do this for a LONG time, much longer than two months. <br />
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As we have been adjusting to being here, I have really been thinking about what ministry <i>looks</i> like. And what I feel like I am being shown is that it doesn't really look any particular way. It is sharing love, hope, laughter, tears, joy, smiles, words in Swahili (or English). It is hugs and games. It is a greeting. A song. It is driving through crazy traffic. It is buying our groceries. Walking into our apartment compound. It is all these things that we do each day-with Jesus added to them. <br />
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I love that God gave us this beautiful gift of seeing Winnie again. We got to see the fruits that resulted from hope planted. That doesn't always happen. Probably doesn't even happen often. So thankful it happened Tuesday!<br />
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<br />Alicia Stewarthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17136453116313101199noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3642560056622979733.post-14255259561589604272012-04-29T12:20:00.001-05:002012-04-29T12:23:09.507-05:00MailingsMany of you have asked about sending things to us. Here is our mailing address:<br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Helvetica;">CMF/Kenya %Tim and Alicia Stewart</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Helvetica;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Helvetica;">PO Box 59322-00200</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Helvetica;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Helvetica;">City Square</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Helvetica;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Helvetica;">Nairobi, Kenya</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Helvetica;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Helvetica;">EAST AFRICA</span><br />
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At this time, it is best NOT to mail packages. We will be charged at customs to retrieve them and prices can vary. However, you can mail us flat envelopes (any size) with things in them.</div>
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Click <a href="http://amzn.com/w/11P263VKW6CTC">here</a> to a link for our "Wish List". Any of these things that will fit in an envelope (shipping or business size) (even if its packed!) will be great. If you are asked to complete a form with the contents and their prices, please use lowest price possible. This will help reduce any cost we may incur.</div>
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We also LOVE just getting cards, pictures, words of encouragement, etc.</div>
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Also, many times a year teams come to serve at Missions of Hope and sometimes they have room to bring stuff to the team. If you have something bigger than envelope size you would like to send us, please let us know and we can try and arrange this.</div>
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So many of you have been so incredibly generous to us and we are in NO way asking for anything more. We just want to answer a question we have been asked a lot. We are so thankful for the generosity and encouragement we regularly receive.</div>Alicia Stewarthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17136453116313101199noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3642560056622979733.post-66133936100298134952012-04-29T12:00:00.002-05:002012-04-29T12:00:21.831-05:00The MundaneEveryone continues to assure us that people really want to know about our daily lives. The ordinary. The mundane. And to be honest, life is beginning to look ordinary. We are developing habits and routines. We are finding our way to different places, learning to drive, and how to do things on our own. <br />
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Until we came here I didn't realize just how much I crave routine. Although I love adventure and trying new things, my heart longs for familiarity, for some semblance of a schedule. When you move you obviously forego those things for awhile and I am thankful to be getting some of that back. However, the ordinary, the mundane, the boring also scares me. In the very depths of my soul it frightens me because in the normalcy I get comfortable. I trust in the routine, in the known. I confess, I don't look for Jesus as much when I know how to navigate my world. I just hate this. I know that part of who I am just needs a schedule, to know what to expect and what is expected, but my heart that also longs for Jesus hates this because I miss Him. I don't always see that He is all around me. All the time. In everything.<br />
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When we first got here, I couldn't have missed Jesus in anything. Even if I wanted to. It felt like every step I took He was there, guiding it. I think it would have been impossible for Him to feel any closer, but almost 2 months have passed. We are familiarizing ourselves with Missions of Hope. Tim has been driving and we know how to get several places unaided. The grocery store that was overwhelming has now become known. Our apartment feels like our home. When frustrations arise we are learning how to handle them. In all this, I find myself not clinging to Jesus like I did. Like I should. Like I want to. <br />
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I think that the routine was in many ways a gift from Him to me. He knows I need this so out of love He provides. He wants me (us) here so He is helping make this transition as smooth as it can be. My choice now is to hold on to what is becoming comfortable or to continue to hold on to Jesus. To be disciplined enough to seek Him-even in the boring. Especially in the boring. He is all around me. I don't want to miss it. At all. Any part. Of any regular, ordinary day.<br />
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<br />Alicia Stewarthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17136453116313101199noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3642560056622979733.post-22152098953415670502012-04-12T13:46:00.003-05:002012-04-12T13:46:56.912-05:00A Month Gone ByA month ago today we were sitting in the airport in Detroit. We had just finished a delicious meal at Chili's. We napped in the airport as we waited to board a plane for Amsterdam. Seems crazy to think it has already been a month. If possible, this past month has moved both quickly and slowly. Here is just a little review of our month:<br />
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*We arrived in Kenya. Got a little rest and experienced some of the worst jet lag ever.<br />
*I struggled the first few days as reality hit me. Thankful for an incredible husband and family. Most importantly, thankful for God's graciousness. He continues to remind us that we are where we should be.<br />
*We took our first bus ride and went to Tanzania for the first time.<br />
*We witnessed firsthand that Tanzania is both beautiful and full of nature and nature is LOUD!<br />
*We waged war on our plague of crickets.<br />
* We finished language school and even have the certificates to prove it.<br />
*We moved into our apartment.<br />
*We started orientation to Missions of Hope.<br />
*I have learned that I want to know how to do everything and be an expert immediately. Turns out, life just doesn't work that way. Thankful for a learning curve!<br />
*We learned (okay, were reminded) that we have the best supporters, friends, prayer partners, and family around. <br />
*We learned just how expensive chicken really is!<br />
*We are learning how to use our shillings and stay within a budget.<br />
*We are continually impressing people without flawless Swahili :)<br />
*We are seeing old friends and meetings new ones.<br />
*We have laughed and played with our niece and nephews online. And even got to attend a birthday party.<br />
*We are becoming more and more dependent upon God.<br />
*We have gotten used to killing mosquitoes and other insects.<br />
*I have been bitten by a Nairobi Fly (so gross!) and about 22 mosquitoes. <br />
*We have continually been reminded of God's goodness, his faithfulness, and the truth of his promises<br />
*We are excited for whatever lies ahead!!<br />
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Thanks for praying and encouraging us. Thanks for supporting us. Our first month has been great and we are certainly looking forward to the coming months!<br />
<br />Alicia Stewarthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17136453116313101199noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3642560056622979733.post-71548596880000659952012-03-27T14:42:00.009-05:002012-04-01T07:50:38.160-05:00In the WhispersOur first Sunday, we stayed in for church since we had no idea where to go or how to get there. We read <a href="http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=mark%209:1-13&version=NLT">Mark 9</a> which talks about the Transfiguration of Jesus. What a huge moment for Peter, James, and John. And Jesus. He was about to reveal his magnificent glory to a few of those who had abandoned it all to follow him. As I read these verses, I definitely get the feeling that these three guys were like WHOA! What exactly did we just see. But no matter what must have been going through their minds or going on in their hearts, there was no way they could have missed the glory of God through Jesus.<br />
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Next we listened to a sermon by Erwin <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">McManus</span></span> in which he referenced <a href="http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=1%20Kings+19&version=NLT">1 Kings 19</a>. Elijah is hopeless and desperate because his life has been threatened. He is so desperate that he is laying under a tree praying to die, when an angel comes along and gives him some food. Utterly hopeless. God brings him to the mountain and asks him to stand there and to wait. Then there is a huge windstorm, then an earthquake, and finally a fire. But God is not in those things. No, he comes along afterwards as a whisper. A still small voice. I began to think that what if Elijah would have decided to stop waiting for God to show up because he wasn't in the big things. If you read back a few chapters, God has allowed Elijah to call fire down from Heaven, bring rain to a land that was parched. God has shown up and done some huge stuff. Elijah couldn't have missed the Glory of God in those moments. But here he is <i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cc9933;">right</span></i> after all that, hopeless, looking for God again. What if he would have missed the whisper because he was expecting the fire?</div>
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How many times do we, do I do this? Like with the Transfiguration, God is so obvious in some things. When we went from 20% support to 60% in a week, it was easy to see God in that. But do I miss him in the whispers? In the moments when He leans so close to my face, breathes into my ear, saying "You are my beloved", "I am with you" "There is no one who could hold you tighter than I do", "See my beauty". Tim and I try so much to see God in the big things as well as the small. When he whispers to us through a Jr. High student who gives a speech in class about what God is doing in our lives, when people email us words of encouragement, when our <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">sadnesses</span></span> are turned to joy, when the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">internet</span></span> works and we get to see our family, talk to our faraway friends. Lately, God has been in the whispers so much. Really, nothing HUGE has happened since we have been at language school. Each day is basically just a slightly different version of the previous day. But God has been talking to us in his still, small voice so much. If we would have been looking to be overwhelmed, we would have missed all that He is doing each day. And oddly enough, when we combine all the whispers, we have found ourselves amazed. Overwhelmed.</div>
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May we not miss God in the big or the small. He is alive, active, and always on the move. </div>
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We would love to here what God is doing in your lives! Leave a comment or email us and let us know how He whispers to you!</div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">(The fine print: I don't even pretend to be scholarly, or a theologian, or know how to use punctuation! These are just my thoughts!) </span></div>
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<br /></div>Alicia Stewarthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17136453116313101199noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3642560056622979733.post-47359589006247776452012-03-27T09:44:00.005-05:002012-03-27T11:54:52.896-05:008 days later<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuH34zawdEpWKN4DkAY9TLXW_is0jyEqSGaHRjV1pVnQ-vX3vaUNGQasCAYkYk_T4kb5AzjzsgbwVyVZoBE7v___v5jIRzEvJIQqyUyAseE6v7tki4SI7jzIwGbgrqHbpDr_xFPT-7680i/s1600/IMG_0135.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 216px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuH34zawdEpWKN4DkAY9TLXW_is0jyEqSGaHRjV1pVnQ-vX3vaUNGQasCAYkYk_T4kb5AzjzsgbwVyVZoBE7v___v5jIRzEvJIQqyUyAseE6v7tki4SI7jzIwGbgrqHbpDr_xFPT-7680i/s320/IMG_0135.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5724590812248157394" /></a><br />Well, we have made it through a week and a day of language school. Since we are still here and our brains have not exploded, I'm gonna call it a success. I joke with Tim that school appears to be making me dumber. The other night he had to explain to me why when it is light here it is dark in the US. I guess new Swahili words are just taking up too much space in the brain. <div><br /></div><div>A typical day for us is to eat breakfast and begin class at 8:30 a.m. We have a wonderful teacher named Godson and there are only two other people in our class. One girl is from Italy and the other is from Sweden. Both work for NGOs or non-for-profit type organizations here in Tanzania. We are learning a lot of grammar as well as vocabulary. Some days it feels as though we are back in grade school learning language rules, changing sentences from positive to negative, changing statements into questions, etc. We take tea from 10-10:30a.m and then we are back in class until 12:30 p.m. when we break for lunch. In the afternoon we have class from 2-4 p.m. We usually only learn new things in the mornings and in the afternoons we play games using things we have learned that day or on previous days.</div><div><br /></div><div>The place we are staying at is very nice. We have a little cottage all to ourselves. It has 2 beds and a bathroom complete with a hot shower. It is a bit rustic as we have shared our bathroom with geckos and have killed a lot of crickets. It is beautiful here and the nature that we are surrounded by is very loud! All night we can hear crickets, frogs, birds, and monkeys. Despite all those things, we are getting our much needed rest. The food is delicious and plentiful, but there are days where I would just love a cheeseburger or a pizza. We can have all those things when we get back to Nairobi so until then we wait. And eat rice. And yummy fruit.</div><div><br /></div><div>We leave here on April 7 and return to Kenya by bus. The bus ride here was nice and it allowed us to see a part of Kenya we had never seen before. Tanzania is beautiful. It is very green and lush. We are located near Mt. Meru and Arusha National Park. On a clear day, you can see Mt. Kilimanjaro from here, but sadly we have yet to see it.</div><div><br /></div><div>In the picture (which Tim took, doesn't he do a great job?!) You can see Mt. Meru and a giraffe. This was taken while we were on a walking safari. It was so incredible as we were able to get super close to giraffes and water buffalo. </div><div><br /></div><div>Once we return to Nairobi, we should move into our apartment and start working. We are so thankful to be here. Although there were some days for me especially that were a little rough, we have never questioned our desire to be here. We belong here and we love it. </div><div><br /></div><div>Until next time, tutaonana baadye!! (See you later!)</div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div>Alicia Stewarthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17136453116313101199noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3642560056622979733.post-45117346119952976992012-03-19T08:41:00.004-05:002012-03-19T10:49:37.169-05:00So it beginsI am not even sure where to begin. It has not quite been a week since we arrived and it already feels as though it has been such a long time. Perhaps I should begin with a disclaimer stating that we are doing great! I (this is Alicia writing) have struggled with wanting to be completely transparent on this blog and knowing that some things don't translate well in writing. Hence, the disclaimer.<div><br /></div><div>Leaving St. Louis last Monday morning was without question the hardest thing I have even done. Or so I thought. We said our goodbyes and shed tears, but God gave us such peace throughout all our travels to Nairobi. We rested all day Wednesday and on Thursday we went into the city and to Missions of Hope's main center. Later that night, I had a little bit of a meltdown as reality sank in. It is such an odd feeling to arrive at the airport with no return ticket. I was just not prepared for what that would really feel like. Because our past few weeks in the US had been so hectic I don't think I really had time to think about or mourn all that would be left behind. Or maybe you can't experience that until you are gone, until those things are no longer a part of your day-to-day. Thursday night that all hit me. Like a ton of bricks. It knocked the wind out of me. It ripped at my heart. </div><div><br /></div><div>Months ago we wrote this <a href="http://www.thestewartsinafrica.blogspot.com/2011/03/sacrifice.html">blog</a> and on Thursday that became reality. Talking about giving things up, trading in all we know for what we have been called to, surrender, etc. seemed so simple when we talked about them. All along this road to Kenya, God has provided markers that indicate we are going the right way, doing what is best. Thursday night was when I think it was time to really surrender it all. To become fully dependent upon God.</div><div><br /></div><div>Here we are in Nairobi, a place we so deeply love and know and yet all of the sudden it feels so unfamiliar. We don't know how to drive, get around, use the money, and so on. It felt so overwhelming. I know there is absolutely no reason why we would know these things, but it felt like we should. </div><div><br /></div><div>That night as lay in bed, I wept. I cried out to God from the depths of my soul. I ached for my family, for the known. Tim was so wonderful and God was so kind and gracious. In training we learned about mourning the losses and I think my time had come to do just that. The saying goes that the deeper you love the harder the goodbyes. I can say without hesitation that I have loved and been loved deeply.</div><div><br /></div><div>During the next fews days I memorized Zephaniah 3:17 which says:</div><div> For the Lord your God is living among you. He is a might savior. He will take delight in you with gladness. With his love, he will calm all your fears. He will rejoice over you with joyful song. </div><div> AND</div><div>2 Corinthians 9:8: And God is able to bless you abundantly, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need you will abound in every good work.</div><div><br /></div><div> I have repeated those verses over and over again. God is sufficient. He loves me. He will calm my fears. He has called me to this place and planted a deep love for Kenya in my heart. He has equipt me with all I need. He has also given me such amazing people to love and who love me back. That means leaving them just stinks. But my life is lived so that Christ may be shared and God may be glorified.</div><div><br /></div><div>I have prayed so many times throughout the years to be like Jesus. Most times I actually meant it. Turns out that is harder than I thought. I can imagine nothing more beautiful than giving my life fully to Christ and allowing God to direct my steps, trusting him for everything, but in that beauty there is pain. There are choices that must continually be made. I love that God is allowing me to experience this so that I may trust Him. I love that He doesn't just allow us to be part of doing His work on Earth, but he beckons us. He pursues us. He provides reminders and joys and challenges and opportunities for growth. He draws us near. He doesn't need us in Kenya, but He wants us here. Wants us to experience bringing the Kingdom of Heaven to Earth. For that I am so grateful. Even through the river of tears, I am so happy to be here. I am continuing to fall more deeply in love with Jesus. And with Tim ;) </div><div>In the midst of the unknown, they are constant.</div><div><br /></div><div>Thanks so much for all you prayers. We knew you were praying for us. We felt it. Words will never be able to fully express our gratitude. Thanks for reading and letting me share my heart. We love it here and can't wait to see what lies ahead.</div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" ;font-family:'Charis SIL', charis, Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" ;font-family:'Charis SIL', charis, Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" ;font-family:'Charis SIL', charis, Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" ;font-family:'Charis SIL', charis, Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> </span></div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:'Charis SIL', charis, Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>Alicia Stewarthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17136453116313101199noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3642560056622979733.post-8619906718471393822012-01-10T15:31:00.004-06:002012-01-10T18:21:04.203-06:00Birthday<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#cc6600;">Today I turn 34. This seems weird to me as I don't feel like what I think 34 should feel like. We don't make a huge deal out of birthdays. Sometimes there is cake, or dinner, or it's a nice excuse to take a weekend trip, but overall not a huge deal. Today I have spent my day in Colorado learning about language acquisition and learning a little Vietnamese. I have received so many kind words and well wishes which have caused my heart to swell a bit today, but it has been a different birthday for sure. Because of this I have thought a lot today about what it means to be born, to celebrate a day of birth, another year. </span><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#cc6600;">All around us we are surrounded by some of the most beautiful scenery ever. The Rockies are majestic and breathtaking. I love the walks we take each day, breathing in fresh air, taking in all that surrounds us. We cannot help but be reminded of God as Creator. His hands so carefully carved the mountains, dug out the oceans, placed the moon, sun, and stars in the appropriate places. And so much more. These hands also knit me together in my mother's womb (see Psalm 139:13). In the secret place, before my parent's even knew I was, God was carefully creating me. And he didn't just Make me, he created me in HIS image and breathed His breath into my life. </span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#cc6600;">I like to think as He was doing this so carefully, so intricately that He was thinking over my life. He saw the day I would arrive in the world. He saw my first steps, my first words, my first scrapes and bruises. He saw the day I would accept his Son as my Saviour, the day He would again breath life into me in the form of his Spirit. He saw mistakes made, lessons learned, challenges overcome. He knew all the things He would use to make me who He created me to be. I like to think He saw Tim as my husband and the day we walked down the aisle and commuted both to each other and also to Him. He saw times in my life where I would make choices that would lead to a lot of hurting. He knew ways he could use that hurt to help others who were hurting. I like to think He gave me a tender heart and in that heart he placed a spot for Africa and more specifically for Kenya. I love to think of him picturing the day I would step off a plane in Uganda and He would reveal this spot in my heart that I was so unaware of. He saw me coming back and sharing this passion and longing with Tim and knew that in just a few short months He would reveal the same soft spot for Kenya in Tim's heart as well. He saw the day we would commit ourselves fully to spreading the name and love of Jesus to the nations. He saw/sees all the days that followed the commitment.</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#cc6600;">As we continue out into the unknown, He knows. He sees. It is so comforting to think that as He was creating me, He sees what comes next. </span></div>Alicia Stewarthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17136453116313101199noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3642560056622979733.post-33166556735128722422011-11-15T13:18:00.001-06:002011-11-15T14:31:30.869-06:00Our LogoIt is safe to say that we are living in transition. As we inch our way closer to a departure date, we find ourselves living more and more in the "in-between." As you can probably imagine this is not an easy place to dwell. We are not fully here and we are not fully there either. At times we have joked that support raising is not for the faint of heart. It ebbs and flows. It is full of blessing and surprises as well as challenges and frustrations. Adding to that is this feeling that you have nowhere that you really belong anymore because everything is changing. At the same time, we feel assured of what we are being called to. Cross-cultural ministry in the slums is where we need to be. Where we long to be. <br />
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As we get closer to leaving, we have both had to say good-bye to many things that we love, things that have held huge places within our lives. Lately, I have been thinking about the logos or labels we wear. There are so many things we adorn ourselves with, things we identify strongly with. We have begun to strip ourselves of these things over the past year. We now find ourselves wearing almost no labels. Tim has worn the SHG logo as student, football player, and coach for years. His football days will be over within the next few weeks. He has wore the Upward shirt, but that is no longer a role he will fill. We have both worn Fusion (WS High School ministry) clothing, we no longer have active roles in that ministry. I have worked at TASC for over 11 years. It was my first job out of college. On December 15, I will no longer be an employee. So what is left? We continue to be son, daughter, sister, brother, auntie, uncle, friend; however, these roles are also changing. Most importantly the label we have left is Child of God, Follower of Christ. <br />
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Today as I thought about the season of life we are in and the challenges it has brought, I began to let go of the frustrations. The confusion. The control. I was reminded that never in our lives have we been given the opportunity to strip away all of our labels and to identify ourselves simply as God's children, His beloved, His Disciples. Nothing else. That is so beautiful to me. <br />
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This time in our lives has been so much about faith. Philip Yancey says "I have learned that faith means trusting in advance what will only make sense in reverse." This makes so much sense to us right now. Last night as we were praying through some struggles, we talked about how we feel like we are Peter walking on the water (<a href="http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=matthew%2014:23-35&version=NIV" target="_blank">see Matt 14:23-25</a>). Sometimes we have moved through this process focused completely on Christ. Our eyes our locked in with His and we fearlessly walk towards him. But then we hear the wind. It comes is the form of rejection, disappointment, frustration, sadness, loss of control. We take our eyes off Christ and we sink. Deeper into those feelings. However, as soon as we again fix our eyes upon Jesus, we take steps into the unknown, into the deep with ease and confidence. As we continue support raising, awaiting a departure date, we continue to walk toward Jesus. He controls the winds and the waves. He calms storms. He calms our hearts. He can be trusted. <br />
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We have no idea how this all works out. He does. We rest in that. In the midst of the ebb and flow, of the blowing wind, we thank Him for a season of life where we are fully dependent upon Him. Where His logo is the only one we put on. Alicia Stewarthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17136453116313101199noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3642560056622979733.post-8457201315702283222011-10-13T13:51:00.000-05:002011-10-13T13:51:08.285-05:00Our Needs<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Calibri", "sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">A previous blog gave a brief explanation of support raising. Now we will go into more detail about our role while serving in Nairobi, our need to get to Kenya, and ways you can be a part of this with us. </span><span style="font-family: "Calibri", "sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"></span></div>
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<a href="http://thestewartsinafrica.blogspot.com/2011/10/our-role.html"><b><u><span style="font-family: "Calibri", "sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">OUR ROLE</span></u></b><span style="font-family: "Calibri", "sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Calibri", "sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Click the link above to get a more detailed idea of what we will be doing while in Nairobi. </span><span style="font-family: "Calibri", "sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Calibri", "sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Alicia will be working directly within the child sponsorship program, Hope Partnership. She will also be able to use her skills as a social worker to provide counseling and other related services to children and their familes.</span><span style="font-family: "Calibri", "sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Calibri", "sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Tim will be using his ministry skills to incorporate evangelism and discipleship into the microfinance program. He will also be focusing on spiritual development while working alongside local pastors serving at Missions of Hope’s several churches.</span><span style="font-family: "Calibri", "sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"></span></div>
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<b><u><span style="font-family: "Calibri", "sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">OUR NEED</span></u></b><span style="font-family: "Calibri", "sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Calibri", "sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">We are certain God is going to use us in some incredible ways, but we need your partnership to make this possible. One way would be financially. We need people to partner will us monthly. Our monthly budget is $7637. We have currently raised<span style="color: #38761d;"> <strong>71%</strong></span> of this budget. <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: blue;"><span style="color: #38761d;">Our remaining balance is $2300 per month!</span></span></b> This number includes housing, ministry and outreach funds, transportation, health insurance and salary. We are seeking individuals who are willing to include this ministry into their monthly budget. No amount is too small, or too great! Without monthly supporters, we cannot sustain our ministry in Nairobi. This partnership is not only a vital one, but is currently our biggest need. </span><span style="font-family: "Calibri", "sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Calibri", "sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">We are also seeking people who are willing to partner with us through special gifts. We have a </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Calibri", "sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">one-time outgoing budget of $37,364. We currently have <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: blue;"><span style="color: #38761d;">46%</span></span></b> of this budget raised. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Calibri", "sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: blue;"><span style="color: #38761d;">Our remaining balance is $20,000.</span></span></b> This figure includes training, airline tickets, purchasing of a vehicle and necessary household items. These gifts are no less important and must also be received in order to depart for the field.</span></div>
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<b><u><span style="font-family: "Calibri", "sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">HOW YOU CAN PLAY A ROLE</span></u></b><span style="font-family: "Calibri", "sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Calibri", "sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Obviously, financial support is critical for us. If you want to partner with us financially, we have several ways you can do that:</span><span style="font-family: "Calibri", "sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Calibri", "sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">You can give online by going to: <span style="color: #38761d;"> </span></span><span style="font-family: "Calibri", "sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><a href="https://p2p.paperlesstrans.com/default.aspx?i=cmfms&c3=STEWART+Tim+and+Alicia&c4=400100"><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #38761d;">https://p2p.paperlesstrans.com/default.aspx?i=cmfms&c3=STEWART+Tim+and+Alicia&c4=400100</span></span></a></span><span style="color: #38761d;"><span style="font-family: "Calibri", "sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Calibri", "sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Calibri", "sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"> This will allow you to securely give a special gift or a recurring transaction. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Calibri", "sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Or if you prefer non-online giving, please email us at </span><span style="font-family: "Calibri", "sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><a href="mailto:thestewarts08@gmail.com"><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="color: #b45f06;">thestewarts08@gmail.com</span></span></a></span><span style="font-family: "Calibri", "sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"> and provide us with your mailing address and we will send you all necessary info.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #38761d;"><strong><u>ALL GIFTS ARE TAX-DEDUCTIBLE.</u></strong></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Calibri", "sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Another way you can partner with us is through prayer. We are seeking individuals, families, small groups, etc. to commit to praying for us one day per week. We will commit to praying for you on that day as well. We will regularly update our prayers needs and would love for you to do the same. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Calibri", "sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">To partner with us in this way, please email us at </span><span style="font-family: "Calibri", "sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><a href="mailto:thestewarts08@gmail.com"><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="color: #b45f06;">thestewarts08@gmail.com</span></span></a></span><span style="color: #b45f06;"><span style="font-family: "Calibri", "sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">.</span><span style="font-family: "Calibri", "sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Calibri", "sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">We have also been giving presentations talking about our call to missions and explaining in more depth our roles while in Nairobi. If you would like to attend one of these informal meetings, please email us and we will make sure you are invited to one of these presentations.</span><span style="font-family: "Calibri", "sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Calibri", "sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">We recognize we are fully dependent upon God and upon others to return to Nairobi to serve the poor. Without financial support, we cannot go to the field. Without the prayers and encouragement of others believers, we cannot effectively minister to those in need. We are so exited about what God is doing in our lives, and we are exited about the many ways that you make it possible. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial", "sans-serif";"><span style="font-family: "Arial", "sans-serif";"></span><i><span style="color: #e69138;">Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see. </span></i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Arial", "sans-serif";"><i><span style="color: #e69138;">Hebrews 11:1</span></i></span></div>Tim and Aliciahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16971448830424993246noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3642560056622979733.post-35877866835023250212011-10-13T13:45:00.001-05:002011-10-13T13:45:12.525-05:00Our Role<span style="background: white; color: #e36c0a; font-family: "Calibri", "sans-serif"; mso-themecolor: accent6; mso-themeshade: 191;">A few weeks ago, Wallace and Mary Kamau travelled from Kenya to visit West Side Christian Church. The Kamuas are the Directors/Founders of Missions of Hope International (MOHi), the ministry we have worked with in the past and will serve with when we move to Nairobi. We were able to spend a great deal of time with them and that time helped to further define our roles in the ministry.</span><br />
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<span style="background: white; color: #e36c0a; font-family: "Calibri", "sans-serif"; mso-themecolor: accent6; mso-themeshade: 191;">Tim will using his ministry skills to incorporate evangelism and discipleship by working within the Spiritual Life Department at MOHi. Missions of Hope currently has planted 6 churches. A church plant begins as a Bible study at one of the schools and continues to grow into an active church. Two new studies have started and will soon become churches. Tim will work alongside recently ordained Kenyan pastors by assisting them as they grow thriving churches. They will be working together to create and implement a discipleship plan for new members of the churches, helping them grow and become consistent in their faith. He will also be working to build relationships within the micro-finance groups, helping to incorporate evangelism into these groups and to connect them to their local church. He will also be using his passion and skills in photography to help communicate the story of Missions of Hope, showing the transformation from the valley of darkness into the Mountain of God.</span><br />
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<span style="background: white; color: #e36c0a; font-family: "Calibri", "sans-serif"; mso-themecolor: accent6; mso-themeshade: 191;">Alicia will help coordinate the child sponsorship program, <a href="http://cmfi.org/partner/partneringproject/hopepartnership/child-sponsorship">Hope Partnership</a>. There are currently over 6,300 student enrolled in the 13 schools operated by MOHi. The Hope Partnership provides educational opportunities to the neediest children living within the Mathare Valley slums. In addition to education, students also receive a school uniform, two meals per day, basic health care, and a focus on spiritual development. The educational opportunities for children in the slums are lacking. In the past, fewer that 5% of students from the slums were able to pass the national exam which is required for entry into high school. The two classes of students at MOHi that have taken the exam have passed at a rate of 100% !! Praise God for the opportunity these children are receiving at Missions of Hope thanks to the thousands of sponsors. The staff at Missions of Hope are praying that over 10,000 students will be enrolled in one of the schools by the end of the year 2012. Alicia will work to gather profiles for the children, facilitate communication between the child and their sponsor, and maintain all sponsorship information. She will also be able to use her skills as a social worker to provide counseling for students and their families.</span><br />
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<span style="background: white; color: #e36c0a; font-family: "Calibri", "sans-serif"; mso-themecolor: accent6; mso-themeshade: 191;">It is safe to say we will be VERY busy once we arrive in Nairobi. We are very eager to assume these roles and our so thankful that God has provided ways for us to use our passions, skills, and talents to serve those living in poverty within the Mathare Valley slums.</span>Alicia Stewarthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17136453116313101199noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3642560056622979733.post-41136834012213990422011-08-22T19:18:00.000-05:002011-08-22T19:18:11.322-05:00Support RaisingIt<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"> seems like we have mentioned support raising many times in previous blogs with the promise to explain in further, but we have never really explained it! So now is our chance to do that.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">Within many missions organizations and other outreach or non-for-profit agencies money to operate must be raised from outside sources. Christian Missionary Fellowship International (</span><a href="http://www.cmfi.org/"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">http://www.cmfi.org/</span></a><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">) or CMF is an organization that depends upon outside donors to operate. As affiliated missionaries with CMF we are responsible to reach out to others in order to raise the funds necessary to serve as international missionaries to Kenya. Most of the time, funds are given through individuals, groups, and churches.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">As you can imagine this is no small task. We have been working for a few months now to contact families and churches to share with them the vision God has given us. We work to effectively communicate our desire and our call to be missionaries to Kenya as well as to share the need for us to serve the poor in the slums of Nairobi, Kenya. We then ask for others to be a part of what God is doing through us by partnering with us in prayer and financial support. This is probably one of the most humbling experiences we have ever had. It is also one of the most rewarding. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">Probably the coolest thing about support raising for us is getting to see God at work through others. We can absolutely not move to Kenya and minister to those in need without others giving to us and praying for us. We have to totally depend upon God to prompt others to partner with us and we have to trust that others will be sensitive to this prompting. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">Another fantastic thing about support raising is that everyone who partners with us is a part of what happens in Kenya. When you read stories about what God is doing there and how he has used us to share the love of Christ with others, our partners are just as much a part of that as we are. Our stories become their stories. I love this. Not everyone is called to move to another country and be a missionary, but everyone is called to share the love of Christ with others everywhere. Supporting missionaries is one way to do that.</span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"> </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">A great way.</span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">A life-changing, world-impacting way. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">Our next blog will explain more of how someone can partner with us. We will outline our need and what funds are used for. Our need is great, but our God is greater. </span>Tim and Aliciahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16971448830424993246noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3642560056622979733.post-5335144145276634942011-06-22T15:19:00.001-05:002011-06-22T16:21:22.774-05:00Our Trip in Pictures<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhExZiTmzSVy51qpWLHfRItdPLWfeBJhlEs-BlKWIg97J9V47vp72bOpgoR_qNNdWysO0PQm_-RxQoNot6fzHnKx1KSHoLz41eQhnjwwUTgyowvrgUZPhz38x4VLeuxdpx2Hu9RmnTiHpD6/s1600/102_2890.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" i$="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhExZiTmzSVy51qpWLHfRItdPLWfeBJhlEs-BlKWIg97J9V47vp72bOpgoR_qNNdWysO0PQm_-RxQoNot6fzHnKx1KSHoLz41eQhnjwwUTgyowvrgUZPhz38x4VLeuxdpx2Hu9RmnTiHpD6/s320/102_2890.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">These beautiful faces greeted us at Bondeni School on Monday morning. They were singing, dancing, smiling and laughing. And our hearts were bursting!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijM4wJFgjZTUd8BYzn5vffGafIdUcz_QTiY8vwNAQGC0WvmPtAR6XYKyojyX2IlxelvuTaQLt69jmsjYUQrehi8mcdQQOkSiKgz_PLWixoHHCunnOSTIizr29yTyTCqFlI_pp8JGCftK8W/s1600/102_2906.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" i$="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijM4wJFgjZTUd8BYzn5vffGafIdUcz_QTiY8vwNAQGC0WvmPtAR6XYKyojyX2IlxelvuTaQLt69jmsjYUQrehi8mcdQQOkSiKgz_PLWixoHHCunnOSTIizr29yTyTCqFlI_pp8JGCftK8W/s320/102_2906.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">We spent Monday and Tuesday taking pictures of over 700 students at both Bondeni School campuses. Here are some of the younger students eagerly waiting for Tim to take their picture.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzlgEKfPDKz8fx0t6-RpskpjdsbGKePwThkblF8Bgf7fJljha9q-xF27h5fUaOy-rrTj8_-hEjE-V3Ear76K2EWolc8Aj_CxNFZEk39E1Jz4YXsVtyQkwSOChmnuIyExOmtIkY53Eia0LR/s1600/102_3001.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" i$="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzlgEKfPDKz8fx0t6-RpskpjdsbGKePwThkblF8Bgf7fJljha9q-xF27h5fUaOy-rrTj8_-hEjE-V3Ear76K2EWolc8Aj_CxNFZEk39E1Jz4YXsVtyQkwSOChmnuIyExOmtIkY53Eia0LR/s320/102_3001.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">One of the students at the upper Bondeni campus was in Kenya's Boy Scouts. Doesn't he look official??</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisHM2CNYPbT_KCHp4ev7krlkhkQ459QupYuSIVPx5jDExo8JTCUznnSctS-3wx60DjGoNt3ICjGu8hidsAHgosDSmx_n-Jtec_b_jA476_oumhiNBqMzwhYr9bZbJJ2wD5cXILMXXQHUbk/s1600/102_3102.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" i$="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisHM2CNYPbT_KCHp4ev7krlkhkQ459QupYuSIVPx5jDExo8JTCUznnSctS-3wx60DjGoNt3ICjGu8hidsAHgosDSmx_n-Jtec_b_jA476_oumhiNBqMzwhYr9bZbJJ2wD5cXILMXXQHUbk/s320/102_3102.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Cheka is the Swahili word for smile. We would constantly be saying "Checka, Checka" to the students. As you can see this student is trying really hard not to crack a smile.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiL2pfysWPvetM6MXiRBLITifZgxIvaoC-8BEaNINQHnIGNOK5XD-GliAH17r_5iO163Zq-jAvMwGoDnLx88MNOo61pNHh8etxAAYlYHn7Zd9z0TyzElnbfYchixqdvirMGUGcHIpRbNVKQ/s1600/102_3101.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" i$="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiL2pfysWPvetM6MXiRBLITifZgxIvaoC-8BEaNINQHnIGNOK5XD-GliAH17r_5iO163Zq-jAvMwGoDnLx88MNOo61pNHh8etxAAYlYHn7Zd9z0TyzElnbfYchixqdvirMGUGcHIpRbNVKQ/s320/102_3101.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">One of the classes at the upper Bondeni campus. They are getting their class photo taken with Alice, the Head Teacher.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjutnuIbegjnXCNv130X2GnKbkjJ6XRxc3Tp2v3p-xgzCZDGZG4ZubUVk1BbRbjy2yCOSlWFgPSxurQsB718zQX8IXwAJqJ5jaVh2zBa-_eI19uKi-Nu92Y_pyTJ7trvOLYbFR8L_jOYgQy/s1600/DSC_6325.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="212" i$="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjutnuIbegjnXCNv130X2GnKbkjJ6XRxc3Tp2v3p-xgzCZDGZG4ZubUVk1BbRbjy2yCOSlWFgPSxurQsB718zQX8IXwAJqJ5jaVh2zBa-_eI19uKi-Nu92Y_pyTJ7trvOLYbFR8L_jOYgQy/s320/DSC_6325.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This little guy melts my heart. I could look at this photo all day long. Never fails to make me smile.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg58X58xRWeBcBASeRrm7PdHnU-cKm9jNpcR8PJk9cFfmTkNPP4f8zWjzlZvceF7o99IWncP75FvvFpm6hi59vz-nPIJBjuLgp7_-ajeWjQqncYcDNlrLsi24PFyuICugPU1pVUnef58fCY/s1600/DSC_6348.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="212" i$="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg58X58xRWeBcBASeRrm7PdHnU-cKm9jNpcR8PJk9cFfmTkNPP4f8zWjzlZvceF7o99IWncP75FvvFpm6hi59vz-nPIJBjuLgp7_-ajeWjQqncYcDNlrLsi24PFyuICugPU1pVUnef58fCY/s320/DSC_6348.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This is Phillip. He drove us all around Nairobi. He is an awesome guy with a fantastic story. I loved sitting up front with him in the van and chatting with him. I'm pretty sure there is nothing I haven't asked him about Nairobi. He used to drive one the crazy matatus, but stopped doing that so he could be part of the ministry at Missions of Hope. Did I mention how awesome he is?! He was so tired every night because we went everywhere and then he went home to help his wife take care of their new twins!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgII827mxulHYe-10T2mCMBvQojHzZkPRTppMZCJe5zQhyJJghYIl-8QXLHKuHHa3hZ0bVdPouUkxDeoEc-v7OknPSVznFOkUL2cmM9IUOJ_udzChHY4L77ECxF_fC1KcoSh3NpmFl0z5pk/s1600/DSC_6398.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="212" i$="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgII827mxulHYe-10T2mCMBvQojHzZkPRTppMZCJe5zQhyJJghYIl-8QXLHKuHHa3hZ0bVdPouUkxDeoEc-v7OknPSVznFOkUL2cmM9IUOJ_udzChHY4L77ECxF_fC1KcoSh3NpmFl0z5pk/s320/DSC_6398.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">We had the photos developed and helped the students decorate picture frames. They LOVED them! They don't often get updated photos of themselves so this was a treat for them. And of course for us! We loved being in the classroom with the students.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrLJ6oYjXHv3b1FG9hCPvlHyLOzGY-vuRIEjFmgnVD17XaFtpgEgj7DBaES5GPpxccdPDB64rU2Bc2v8Hl-QdpqoqECNQj1KoU69Qn1aR7Yqfv5XMRXh58EH2WnKx5bsGCjTZ8Tv5Q2dZo/s1600/DSC_6399.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="212" i$="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrLJ6oYjXHv3b1FG9hCPvlHyLOzGY-vuRIEjFmgnVD17XaFtpgEgj7DBaES5GPpxccdPDB64rU2Bc2v8Hl-QdpqoqECNQj1KoU69Qn1aR7Yqfv5XMRXh58EH2WnKx5bsGCjTZ8Tv5Q2dZo/s320/DSC_6399.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Jr. High Students at West Side are raising money this summer for the students at Bondeni. They sent small beach balls with special messages written on them with us along with a photo of themselves. We taught the kids how to inflate and deflate the beach balls. They were so much fun. When we were out in the community we would see the kids holding tightly to their beach balls and photos.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiE0XpwViwlAb12DWIy8UI8b32lO21TCamIoHveTacxjoBOqMGL8mezcMK38cuVsKA2Y0BcCr_GpuK8hrfckL35hyk2j1uYcG0E9Qv04vVSlxzlOeFphiY-mwQiw8EaShmMvmFZSxF5bk96/s1600/DSC_6403.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="212" i$="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiE0XpwViwlAb12DWIy8UI8b32lO21TCamIoHveTacxjoBOqMGL8mezcMK38cuVsKA2Y0BcCr_GpuK8hrfckL35hyk2j1uYcG0E9Qv04vVSlxzlOeFphiY-mwQiw8EaShmMvmFZSxF5bk96/s320/DSC_6403.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">So excited with their new treasures. Photos and beach balls. What could be better?!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0eA8yXFd-GQi3ADIbBZ-n8f28tI7Oqq-g1plsu7t-299dZQNgATSVR22IvunrsQ9R_nL4q2YZ0s4MNqj-8_BMkt6GgCb9DigADov8YztZy_DKkOJ7VEeMB2yMycv86_TWdy7urvqTYo9Q/s1600/DSC_6705.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="212" i$="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0eA8yXFd-GQi3ADIbBZ-n8f28tI7Oqq-g1plsu7t-299dZQNgATSVR22IvunrsQ9R_nL4q2YZ0s4MNqj-8_BMkt6GgCb9DigADov8YztZy_DKkOJ7VEeMB2yMycv86_TWdy7urvqTYo9Q/s320/DSC_6705.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">We brought a few larger beach balls out into the school yard to play with all the students. We had a blast! The school yard is just dirt and it was really warm that day so after playing we filthy and super sweaty, but we all had the best time. I seriously could spend all day hanging out with the students in the school yard.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQRWqpkuDypUSJ_UpLWCpp0vjgFUyx-aWJCQfdzAW6D_gyzwffMaFeHBImKtiL8Qxa2CI6M7bD34Fn7TEF0XAeRwjv3j7nJ6pElWPEXaAcRe2qhihYVuThFuKQHjEky0-buEIKkCTXTH6-/s1600/DSC_6867.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="212" i$="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQRWqpkuDypUSJ_UpLWCpp0vjgFUyx-aWJCQfdzAW6D_gyzwffMaFeHBImKtiL8Qxa2CI6M7bD34Fn7TEF0XAeRwjv3j7nJ6pElWPEXaAcRe2qhihYVuThFuKQHjEky0-buEIKkCTXTH6-/s320/DSC_6867.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This is our sponsored kid, Ian. He attends school at Bondeni and his teacher tells us he is a great student. This pic was at the end of the week and he was a little less afraid of us. The first day when we saw him he was a bit shy, but totally warmed up after spending time with us all week. He is such a sweet kid and we love being a part of his life!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjzhsPDU_UpKCDn187k09CY-M0f9QbV731peS6Afpm7fEGDO4cQsC_rAe7l9C7dBOFjd52bC5L3XzP8wYHP4lkzBLbaz9qHw7N0v4IfAGWDIKMLDPDkGi1UXnRHeJAE-nKn1ApXkMptdOP/s1600/DSC_6896.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="212" i$="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjzhsPDU_UpKCDn187k09CY-M0f9QbV731peS6Afpm7fEGDO4cQsC_rAe7l9C7dBOFjd52bC5L3XzP8wYHP4lkzBLbaz9qHw7N0v4IfAGWDIKMLDPDkGi1UXnRHeJAE-nKn1ApXkMptdOP/s320/DSC_6896.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This is the newly built upper Bondeni campus. It is the school for the older Bondeni students. It is such a shiny beacon of hope amidst the dark, dirty background of Mathare Valley. The students just started school there this year and have almost outgrown it already. What an awesome issue to deal with! </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqmYGGCyYWYB4WhEhdwF8kFz_oGX2iBTnYo3BDknuL6OSCKLBOP5hb3JE-UMlbfBw_LcMtTml8_qBVCHJeV8X2OqDpIHyb43cUQERqwRNbzisOZxXfcRPaRb81RtSiO0VTMIbYhK8oT04m/s1600/DSC_7065.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="212" i$="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqmYGGCyYWYB4WhEhdwF8kFz_oGX2iBTnYo3BDknuL6OSCKLBOP5hb3JE-UMlbfBw_LcMtTml8_qBVCHJeV8X2OqDpIHyb43cUQERqwRNbzisOZxXfcRPaRb81RtSiO0VTMIbYhK8oT04m/s320/DSC_7065.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The slums</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfg3WuqpZ1t1am6SUX6Ox0lVHikYxdh1nQ_jRqbpzpUP_dL2NNO9Uxbokz6O-f7-JxYVWe8Hm1Eks-5fT5YdpeuSXZJ5_L-46o4uxUha5eWloaUPi1S6Lo5Y18nxMJgdio5aNZM6gWtgZT/s1600/DSC_7066.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="212" i$="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfg3WuqpZ1t1am6SUX6Ox0lVHikYxdh1nQ_jRqbpzpUP_dL2NNO9Uxbokz6O-f7-JxYVWe8Hm1Eks-5fT5YdpeuSXZJ5_L-46o4uxUha5eWloaUPi1S6Lo5Y18nxMJgdio5aNZM6gWtgZT/s320/DSC_7066.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The slums. The shiny building in the back is Bondeni school. See how it shines :)</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVnsXS_6IcIc6V1YuFKWMkUlBu3RfYlHBW_1l2p7E-tXZXUKgvRJeOcGKRCjzIeZCEnAa0e-NE8eLjCycoT7XgeF-MSkYMW3eV1aF1fnkBU-ZfzFhj1TdFsXkCcnZKGYGfI5Ipp-b2mAKn/s1600/DSC_7099.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="212" i$="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVnsXS_6IcIc6V1YuFKWMkUlBu3RfYlHBW_1l2p7E-tXZXUKgvRJeOcGKRCjzIeZCEnAa0e-NE8eLjCycoT7XgeF-MSkYMW3eV1aF1fnkBU-ZfzFhj1TdFsXkCcnZKGYGfI5Ipp-b2mAKn/s320/DSC_7099.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">All the students at the new building. They beach ball says HOPE. That sums it all up!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>Tim and Aliciahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16971448830424993246noreply@blogger.com0